


Kisses in a Crooked Tent

by samcat



Series: Q's Vacation [1]
Category: James Bond (Craig movies)
Genre: Camping, Established Relationship, Kinda Fluffy, M/M, Vacation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-07
Updated: 2016-06-07
Packaged: 2018-07-12 23:25:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7128257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/samcat/pseuds/samcat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Q travels to Vermont to appreciate a rare opportunity for a vacation and some alone-time. However, it doesn't take long before James crashes the party.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Kisses in a Crooked Tent

**Author's Note:**

> Dedicated to my friend @my-queer-watson on tumblr.
> 
> (Alternative title: 'A Marshmallow with a weird-looking Camera'.)

Getting enough time off work to go on a vacation was rare and being allowed to stay away for the time promised was even rarer. Having two weeks off could just as easily mean two days, or two hours if you were unlucky. Because of this, Q was determined to make the absolute most out of every moment for however long this was going to last. He had been promised 10 days off to get away for a while and he had decided, against his own better judgement, to go camping in Vermont. It was autumn and the travel agency had made the “beautiful orange forests” sound too good to pass up on.

Originally he had planned to take his cats with him but when he had decided on his destination he realised the flights would be too stressful for them - and the forest wouldn't necessarily be a safe enviroment for them either. After quickly having hunted down the best cat-sitter in London (not as easy task for the average person, but Q was well acquainted with more than his fair share of cat forums online), he was now sitting on the plane waiting to take off. He had made sure to exchange numbers with the cat-sitter before leaving his cats with them and he intended to send them five regularly scheduled texts per day to check up on how his cats were doing, and he expected them to reply before the next text was due. If they didn’t, they’d have a very bad review of their services circulated around every major cat forum there was.

He double checked that his seatbelt was on when the plane started to move and then took his glasses off, putting them in his chest pocket. Closing his eyes and leaning back, he decided that he might as well try to get some sleep. He wished that airline offered ‘do not disturb’ signs that he could hang on himself to prevent the stewardesses from waking him up and asking if he needed something.

-

Sending away the first text to check up on the cats, Q stood and waited impatiently for his luggage. Every minute wasted was just that: wasted. He sighed and rubbed his eyes before putting his glasses back on and pulling out his camera from his backpack. There wasn’t much to photograph from where he was standing right now, but you never know when a few shots of a random crowd of people will save the country.

Leaving the camera hanging around his neck, he grabbed his black-and-grey checkered suitcase and finally started making his way out of the airport. Awkwardly shuffling between families and single travelers - like himself - he eventually stepped outside into the crisp air. It was colder than he had expected and he shivered as he looked around for a cab.

His phone buzzed and he pulled it out to see a comforting text from the cat-sitter ensuring him that they were all doing okay. He smiled at it and told himself to remember to ask them to attach a picture the next time.

Finally catching a cab, he sat down inside it together with his bags. He gave the driver the directions he had memorized from a traveling guide and leaned back.

He needed to visit a shop to buy himself some camping equipment before anything else. He hadn’t wanted to bring it all with him all the way from London and he had seen plenty of outdoorsy shops on the city map, so he wasn’t worried about not being able to find the stuff he needed.

Paying and tipping the cab driver, he stepped out on the pavement and attempted to orient himself. After spinning around on the spot for a while, he eventually accepted the fact that he had failed to do that. He pulled out his phone again and let it show him the way to the shop he was looking for.

When he walked in, one of the employees approached him with a way-too-cheerful greeting and a fake smile. He smiled back at them, hoping his smile looked at least somewhat genuine, and gave them a small nod. He was grateful his work wasn’t as dull as theirs.

He found a tent, a backpack better suited for camping than the one he had with him, a compass, and various other things he figured he might need. The cashier also provided him with a map of one of the forested areas nearby.

After a bit of convincing he got the employees of the store to let him re-pack his stuff into his new backpack and leave the old bags there. He doubted they would still be there when he went back - frankly he doubted he would even be given a chance to pick them up when he was called back to London - but he didn’t care enough about them to store them anywhere else.

When he walked out of the store and once again was hit by the cold air, he realised he was still wearing only a light jacket, jeans and a turtleneck. He pulled out his phone to once again rely on it for directions as he started walking towards a store that he hoped specialized in outerwear. He had some better clothes with him that he had planned to change into, but after re-packing his stuff into his new bag that had all ended up in the bottom and he didn’t have the patience to dig it out. He wanted to get started with the camping before it was too late.

Camera still around his neck, hitting his chest lightly for each step he took, he felt people looking at him as he walked down the street. Nobody had ever looked as much like a tourist as he did right then.

-

Finally on the track, he tried to keep his walking speed high enough to not let the mosquitoes catch up and completely drain him of blood. He already had plenty more bites than he wanted.

Still, he stopped when he saw a bird land on a branch just a few steps ahead of him. Lifting up the camera he still had around his neck, he snapped a shot of it. Then he slowly started moving closer to it. It wasn’t singing or chirping, but it wasn’t showing any signs of being about to fly away either. Turning its head quickly from side to side, it stayed at the branch all the while Q moved closer and closer.

When he was almost within arm’s reach of the bird he pulled up the camera again and took a few more pictures. He was surprised it let him come so close. Perhaps the wildlife here was more used to humans than he had expected. Silently praying not to run into a too friendly bear, he walked past the bird and continued on.

About an hour’s hike later he reached what he figured would be a good camping spot. Taking off his backpack and setting it down on the ground, he wiped the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand. He sighed at the thought of putting the tent together and wondered if he would even have internet access out here. If not, he would have to rely on the paper instructions. He shivered at the thought.

It was a welcome distraction when his phone buzzed with the final cat update for the day. He lingered and smiled at the picture of his little darlings for a while before he closed the message and opened the web browser. He had an internet connection. Thank god.

About two hours of frustration and curse words later, the tent finally stood steady enough in front of him. A bit crooked, sure, but not too shabby. He felt quite proud of himself as he stood there with his hands on his sides, admiring his handywork. Checking his watch, he noticed there was still almost an hour left before the sun would start to set. He decide to use that time to explore the nearby area a bit.

A little over half an hour of of brisk walking later, he found himself at the top of a hill with a beautiful view of the forest below. Lifting up his camera, he admired the view through it while he took pictures. Turning around, still keeping the camera in front of his eyes, he saw a blurry figure at the bottom of the hill he was on. He froze. He thought he recognised the frame of the person below and half hoping he was right, half hoping he was wrong, he lifted one of his hands to adjust the lens so that he could get a clearer look.  
“Oh no,” he lowered the camera in displeasure.  
“What? Am I not in focus?”, James shouted and grinned as he started walking up towards him.  
“How did you even hear what I just said,” Q almost whispered as James quickly reached the top of the hill.  
“I have rather excellent hearing.”  
“Of course you do,” Q sighed. He couldn’t believe his vacation was already getting cut short.  
The sun had started to set now and he felt his annoyance grow even stronger as he watched the light hit the other man’s face. He hated how the sight of it made his heart beat faster.  
“What was that thing you were holding in front of your face? The latest in Q-branch binoculars?”  
Q blinked in surprise. “No, it’s…” he almost said ‘just a normal camera’, but that would have been a lie. He had bought it just as any regular old camera, but he had made more than a few modifications to it. “It’s just a camera.”  
James glanced at it and raised an eyebrow in doubt, but didn’t say anything more about it.  
“So you’re here to tell me that my vacation is over already, then?” Q only showed the slightest hint of disappointment in his voice.  
“Not quite,” James shifted his position and put his hands in his pockets. “I’ve been sent here to keep an eye on you. MI6 can’t afford to lose its quartermaster to an angry lynx.”  
Q laughed.  
“I’m serious,” James said.  
Still laughing, Q shook his head. “There’s no way they’d waste the famous 007 by sending him on a mission to monitor me.”  
“I might have requested to get this mission.”  
Q stopped laughing. “Tell me you’re joking.”  
“Afraid not,” James winked at him and then started walking back down the hill. “So we’re sleeping in a tent then? I bet you could have afforded a stay in a five star hotel with your salary.”  
“Am I really obligated to share a tent with you?” Q said as he started walking after him. He knew the answer would be a ‘yes’, but he still had to ask. He was not looking forward to sharing a small tent with double-oh-snore.  
“Of course. How else am I going to keep an eye on you during the night?”  
“I’m quite sure your eyes will be closed.”  
“And why is that?”  
“Have there been some major advancements in technology during the not-even-24-hours that I have been gone? If not, then you are still a human being and you need sleep.”  
James shrugged. “Maybe I had hoped to do something more interesting than sleeping.”  
Q decided not to reward that comment with a reply.

-

When they got back to the tent the sun had set completely. Q was using his phone as a flashlight in order to see what he was doing as he unzipped the opening to the tent.  
“I’m not sure how we’re both going to fit in here,” Q said.  
“Not going to be a problem. If we’re short on space I’ll just lie on top of you.”  
Q rolled his eyes and crawled into the tent, shortly followed by James. There was enough room for them both in there, but it was a tight squeeze. Touching each other could be inevitable.  
Rolling out his sleeping bag, Q turned to James. “So where’s yours then?”  
“My what?”  
“Your sleeping bag. Or are you planning on sleeping right on the ground?”  
“The ground is fine. I’ve slept in worse places,” James said as he laid down.  
“I imagined you would be used to sleeping in five star beds, with your salary and all, I mean.”  
James smirked at him and propped himself up on one arm, turning to his side to look at Q. “We could go back into civilization and get a room if you want to.”  
“...’get a room’,” Q mockingly replied in a high pitched voice. “No thank you.” He wriggled into his sleeping bag and closed his eyes defiantly.

-

Sitting up with a jerk, Q choked back a scream and started fighting to get free from his sleeping bag. The noise that had woken him (and that was still ongoing) sounded like a mix between a motor revving and a stereotypical movie monster roaring. He looked over at James and saw him sitting up in the almost pitch black darkness.  
“Do you know what that sound is?” James asked him.  
“P-probably just a moose.” Logically, he knew almost for certain that that was what it was. But hearing a noise like that while defenseless in a tent in the middle of the night, it was hard for him to make himself believe it. “Yeah, just a moose. Definitely.”  
Finally escaping the sleeping bag, he crawled to the tent opening.  
“If it’s just a moose, where are you running to?” James still sat still in the same place where he had been when Q woke up, as calm and stoic as ever.  
“I-... I’m…” He didn’t know where he was going. What was he planning to do? Run all the way back to the city and hope that the moose didn’t notice him? That didn’t strike him as a very good plan. “I don’t know”. Dejected, he sat down on his butt and sighed.  
The noise was still going on. It didn’t sound like it had gotten any farther away, but it didn’t sound any closer either and Q took a great deal of comfort in that.  
James leaned forward and put a hand on his shoulder. Q had expected to get some snarky remark and was glad that James had decided to instead be delicate with him right now. He laid back down, on top of his sleeping bag instead of inside it this time - and closer to James. At the next roar of the moose he turned on his side and snuggled up even closer. He felt himself relax a bit when James put his arms around him. Perhaps sharing a tent with him wasn’t so bad after all.

By the time the source of the noise finally started to move away, they both had their arms around each other.  
“Think your monster moose is leaving now,” James said. He showed no sign of wanting to let go of Q.  
“Mmh”, Q had almost fallen asleep. “Reckon we can finally get some rest now, then.”  
James gave him a soft kiss. “Aren’t you one of those people that are constantly pulling all-nighters back home?”  
“Yes,” Q smiled against his lips. “But back in London I rarely need to use up all my energy for hiking.”  
“I’ll get you a personal trainer when we get back.”  
“Please don’t.”  
James laughed.  
Enjoying the mood, Q laughed too. His eyelids hadn’t been this heavy in a long time, but he felt that going to sleep now would be wasteful.  
He put one of his hands on James’ cheek and kissed him again. The air in the tent was cold, which only served to make the kiss feel even warmer.  
James pulled him in tighter as he broke off the kiss. “Is this your idea of resting?”.  
“Well, I am feeling very relaxed,” Q said as he wriggled a bit to free himself from the tight hug and flopped himself up on James’ chest, draping one of his arms and his upper body over him.  
“Did I just get downgraded to a mattress?”  
“You’re softer than you think.”  
“Am I now,” James chuckled as he tightened his embrace of Q again.  
They stayed that way, arms around each other and exchanging soft kisses, until they both fell asleep.

-

Q woke up when James unzipped the tent opening in the morning. Yawning, he stretched out his arms and rolled his neck a new times before crawling out after him. He had slept surprisingly well, but his body hadn’t appreciated the hard ground - and James - as a replacement for the soft beds it was used to.

Even though the sun was up, the air was still cold. He watched his breath come out as puffs of smoke from his mouth. Not exactly ideal camping weather. He figured he might as well take James up on the getting-a-room thing. He started taking down the tent, hoping it would be a quicker process than setting it up.

James was standing a few feet away, seemingly scanning the forest. Q didn’t know if he was on the look-out for humans or mooses and he wasn’t going to ask.

Instead he stopped what he was doing and pulled out his camera and snapped a picture of him, a thin cloud of hot air visibly coming out of his mouth. _New desktop background_ , he thought.


End file.
